DEAR VIRGINIA:

Dear Stop Corrupt DSS:

  

I am 8 years old, soon to be 9, and all I really want is a birthday party with some presents.  I am in foster care and the older foster children and  the foster mother tell me that there are no birthday presents, Christmas or any other holidays allowed.  Is this true? My momma (my biological mother) always told me if I saw it on your blog it was so.  Would you please tell me the truth? 

Virginia Foster

1224 No Home Lane

No Place, America

  

(not an actual letter)

 

I take absolutely no pleasure in writing this post, but the truth must be told and I feel I am obligated to do so.

  

No Virginia, there is not a Santa Claus, nor is there a Tooth Fairy or apparently a birthday party for little foster children like you.  These wonderful, magical occasions are all just a figment of your imagination because your foster parents are not paid to bring you joy or give you a childhood. 

 

Where in a normal upbringing you would experience all of the joyous, wonderful merriments of youth, YOU unfortunately, will be denied all of these things.  You are just a foster child in their eyes, a burden that they have to endure to receive the funds they obtain from the state in order to “provide” for your care and sadly, this does not include the magical dreams of youth fantasy and life.

 

How dreary life will be for you Virginia, more so than other children…especially after you “age out” and are homeless, living on the streets, in jail or dead like so many other foster children that share your fate.  More than likely, you will be made a legal orphan by the state and be denied a family to help you through your hard times.

 

Buckle up baby girl, because your life is going to be rough.

  Virginia, you will be defeated and beaten down.  You will feel unwanted and unloved. You will be denied a childhood by the very people who are supposed to be sworn to protect yours.  I feel your pain and the undeniable loss of your stolen childhood.  More than anything, I wish I could tell you of some heavenly ending or that a marvelous fairytale life awaits you and that you will live happily ever after, but that just would not be the truth. 

 Sadly, you will have no Santa Claus sneaking down your chimney at night to bring you a bag full of goodies.  There will be no tooth fairy dancing into your room while you sleep for the sole purpose of seeing your gummy smile and to lay a dollar beneath your pillow. Nor will you have the elation of birthday parties thrown by people who are ecstatic that you were born and cherish your existence…

 I am so sorry Virginia….

 With Much Love and Regret,

 Lawdoll

 

Below is the actual question that I read that resulted in the above.  Just the fact that a person would be so cold and heartless that they would even ask this question in mind boggling. 

DO WE HAVE TO BUY OUR FOSTER KID A BIRTHDAY PRESENT? OR HAVE A PARTY?

Do We Have To Buy Our Foster Kid A Birthday Present? Or Have A Party?

Our foster kid turns 9 next week and she keeps telling us stuff she wants for her birthday.Also she keeps asking for a party.I thought you didn’t have to give foster kids this stuff?We buy her clothes and food and all seriously how much money do they think we should spend on her?

My  idea for the above post came from one of my favorite Christmas Newspaper Editorials by Francis P. Church.  Mr. Church wrote it for the New York Sun, September 21, 1897.  You can see that editorial here and frankly it is a lot more cheerful and optimistic then the post I have written. 

I saw the question by this foster parent and the truth of the matter is I know the foster child of this person is going to be completely crushed and heartbroken. I wanted to put it into writing so maybe others could feel the disappointment and pain that she is going to feel on her birthday and every other holiday that remains to come while this child is in this foster home.

This may be reposted, just please give me credit if you do…Thanks….

WOMAN PLEADS GUILTY TO CHILD’S DEATH

 

http://www.myfoxdc.com/dpp/news/virginia/070609_glover_pleads_guilty_to_childs_death

Updated: Monday, 06 Jul 2009, 12:54 PM EDT

Published : Monday, 06 Jul 2009, 11:45 AM EDT

MANASSAS, Va. – A Manassas woman has pleaded guilty to killing her 13-year-old adopted daughter.

Alfreedia Gregg-Glover pleaded guilty Monday in Prince William County Circuit Court to felony murder, felony child abuse and filing a false police report.

Police say Gregg-Glover lied when she told them her daughter Alexis “Lexie” Agyepong-Glover had run away in January. A massive search ensued, and two days later the girl’s body was found in a Woodbridge creek.

The county’s social services agency fired one senior social worker and disciplined two others for mishandling the case. An internal review found that several employees did not follow proper procedures in response to abuse and neglect reports about the child.

Gregg-Glover’s sentencing is set for Oct. 2.

GIRL’S FATHER WAS INVESTIGATED FOR ABUSE IN OTHER STATES

 

http://hamptonroads.com/2009/06/girls-father-was-investigated-abuse-other-states

By Alicia P.Q. Wittmeyer

Mike Saewitz

The Virginian-Pilot

© June 23, 2009

CHEASPEAKE

The father of 5-year-old Carly Sawyer, who is charged in her June 11 death, had been investigated by social service workers in other states, according to a city memo, but their counterparts in Chesapeake never knew about it.

The information came in a memo about the case prepared for the Chesapeake City Council. City officials declined to elaborate.

One advocate said the case illustrates how difficult it is to track such investigations from state to state.

“There is no system in place to transfer cases from state to state,” said Betty Wade Coyle, executive director of Prevent Child Abuse Hampton Roads. “Even worse, there’s no national registry of founded cases. Every case is kept state by state.”

On June 10, one of the Sawyers called 911 after Carly became unconscious. Brandy Sawyer, Carly’s stepmother, had spanked Carly and the girl had thrown herself to the floor, the parents told police.

The girl arrived at the hospital with cuts, bruises and burns and ligature marks on her wrists. Police say Joshua and Brandy Sawyer put Carly in a box as punishment, tied her up with mesh netting to keep her from getting food from the refrigerator, and hit her with a belt as a method of potty training.

Joshua Sawyer, who as a Marine corporal had spent time in Iraq, has been charged with second-degree murder. Brandy Sawyer has been charged with first-degree murder.

In court last week, prosecutors described what they call “long, systematic abuse” of the girl by her father and stepmother.

By the time she was 2 years old, Carly was involved in a custody dispute in Onslow County, N.C. Documents in that case say her mother had been involved in at least one social services investigation there in 2005. That investigation was terminated after Joshua Sawyer’s parents got involved with caring for Carly, according to court records.

Carly’s mother, Jennifer Kimery, said she’d again contacted the Onslow County Department of Social Services in the summer of 2006, after she’d driven up from Georgia to visit Carly and noticed her behaving strangely. Kimery said Monday that the department told her it had contacted Josh Sawyer, then dropped the case.

A few weeks later, Kimery took Carly with her back to Georgia. There, she said she brought her to the Marine Corps Logistics Base in Albany and asked the Naval Criminal Investigative Service to examine her daughter. She brought her to a hospital and gave a statement to investigators, she said. She said she never learned the outcome of the investigation.

North Carolina Division of Social Services would not comment on whether the agency had any cases involving Carly’s family. A representative for NCIS said Monday that he wasn’t familiar with the circumstances and that the service is checking its records.

In general, if a case has been closed – meaning there were no concerns about the child’s safety or that those concerns had been addressed – the division does not alert other agencies out of state about the family, said Kevin Kelley, assistant section chief for child welfare services.

“If it’s been closed and we felt like the child was safe, they’re free to move about,” Kelley said.

Sawyer told a judge last week that he’d moved to Chesapeake about a year ago, after leaving the Marine Corps.

Chesapeake did not have any prior involvement with the family, and social services workers here did not know that Joshua Sawyer had been investigated in other states, according to the June 15 memo to the Chesapeake City Council.

Officials with Chesapeake Social Services say they generally get calls or letters from social services officials in other states – but only if child abuse or neglect cases are founded or substantiated, and only if the agency knows that a family has moved.

Even if there is a substantiated case, social service agencies in other states aren’t obligated to pass case information along to another state, Coyle said.

And “there’s no way the agency in North Carolina would have known that they had moved” unless the agency was providing the family services at the time, Coyle said.

She said it is “very easy” for cases to get lost between states.

“The obligation is on the friends and family and parents of the child to make sure the system follows that child,” Coyle said.

Mike Saewitz, (757) 222-5207, mike.saewitz@pilotonline.com

SOCIAL WORKER FIRED AFTER VIRGINIA GIRL’S DEATH

Social Worker Fired in Slaying

 

2 Others Suspended Over the Pr. William Child Abuse Case

 

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/06/17/AR2009061703501.html

 

A Prince William County social services employee has been fired and two others disciplined for mishandling the case of a 13-year-old girl whose adoptive mother is accused of abusing and killing her, county officials said yesterday.

After Alexis “Lexie” Agyepong-Glover was found slain in a frigid creek Jan. 9, many people, including school bus drivers, said they had reported seeing signs that she was being abused by her mother, Alfreedia Gregg-Glover, but she was not removed from the home.

Several investigations were launched at the local and state levels, and an internal review by the county’s Department of Social Services found that several employees did not follow proper procedures in response to the abuse and neglect reports, officials said.

“I would say that we made some errors, no doubt about it,” said John P. Ledden Jr., director of social services, adding that the investigation’s findings have led to procedural changes. “I want to ensure we learn something from this case.”

Ledden declined to discuss the specific procedures his employees failed to follow. He said that in some cases the required actions were taken, but not within the proper time frames.

One change in place involves how multiple complaints about the same child are handled, even when they are determined to be invalid, Ledden said. Now, three abuse reports about the same child that are deemed invalid will prompt a further inquiry into the child’s case, he said.

In addition, Ledden said the Board of County Supervisors gave his agency funding in the most recent budget to hire two more social workers after July 1, and he is considering increasing the training and number of responders on call after hours.

Ledden has also been meeting with county Police Chief Charlie T. Deane to discuss how their departments can better coordinate and share information, and he might ask the county to petition the General Assembly for less-restrictive laws governing what information can be shared across agencies in child abuse cases.

One senior social worker was fired Tuesday, and two social work managers were suspended for five days without pay, officials said. A probationary employee involved in Lexie’s case has also been fired, although there were other problems with that social worker beyond the Glover case, officials said.

Officials did not release the names of the employees, citing confidentiality rules about personnel matters.

Several officials, including Ledden, said they hope improved procedures at the agency will be a silver lining to the tragedy.

“If something good is going to come out of this, it’s that the county has been able to learn from this,” said Supervisor Martin E. Nohe (R-Coles), an adoptive parent. “The DSS staff and the board of supervisors have really been focused on not trying to sweep this under the rug but, rather, finding out what happened.”

Ledden stopped short of assigning blame for Lexie’s death to any of the employees.

“The particular errors that we made — it’s not like it resulted in the child’s death,” Ledden said. ( I would say that is exactly what they resulted in) ”There’s only one person responsible for the child’s death . . . and that’s Mrs. Glover, if she’s found guilty. Even with the employees leaving, they’re not leaving out the door thinking they’re responsible for the girl’s murder.”

Board of County Supervisors Chairman Corey A. Stewart (R) said that all the facts in Lexie’s case are not out and that it’s difficult to say whether her death was preventable.

“I don’t think that this is reflective of DSS as a whole or even child protective services,” Stewart said. “Clearly we had a few employees who made some mistakes, tragic mistakes . . . but I don’t think it’s an indictment of the system as a whole, or all the personnel in social services.”

To those who tried to sound the alarm that Lexie was being abused over the two years before she was killed, the firings and suspensions were a welcome surprise. But they vigorously dispute the notion that county officials didn’t share in the blame for her death.

“We understand that you didn’t murder her, but if you wouldhave done your job and removed her from the home, she would have been protected,” said Marlene Williams, a bus driver who, along with her attendant, reported to police that they saw Lexie’s adoptive mother drive off with the girl in the trunk of a car in 2007.

Williams’s feelings were echoed by others who had made reports. In December, Lexie’s neighbor, Wes Byers, reported finding her barely clothed in the freezing cold with a head wound outside his home. Lexie’s former bus driver, Nancy Frederick, said she told officials that Lexie displayed bruises and marks that looked like she’d been tied up and that she came to the bus in her underwear. Others in the neighborhood said they found Lexie to be hungry and terrified to return home on occasions when she ran away.

In addition to Ledden’s investigation, the Virginia Department of Social Services is conducting an inquiry into Lexie’s case, which is expected to be released to county officials within the next three weeks, a state DSS spokesman said. The state has also conducted a Quality Management Review of the county Department of Social Services’ general practices — which will not mention Lexie specifically — expected to be finalized within the next week.

Deane has also ordered an internal review of his department’s handling of its encounters with Lexie. Deane has said he hopes to be as transparent as possible about the findings, although some redactions might be necessary because of confidentiality concerns. He declined yesterday to discuss whether his internal review has resulted in any disciplinary action. Gregg-Glover’s trial is scheduled for July 6.

 

Social worker fired after Va. girl’s death

 

http://www.dailypress.com/news/virginia/dp-dc–deadgirl0618jun18,0,4492217.story

By the Associated Press

 June 18, 2009

MANASSAS, Va. – A social services employee has been fired and two others disciplined in Prince William County for mishandling the case of a 13-year-old girl who authorities say was abused and killed by her adoptive mother, officials said this week.

After Alexis “Lexie” Agyepong-Glover was found slain in a creek in January, many people said they had reported signs of abuse by her mother, Alfreedia Gregg-Glover, but the teen was not removed from the home. Gregg-Glover faces murder charges in the girl’s death.

An internal review found that several employees did not follow proper procedures in response to the abuse and neglect reports, county officials announced Wednesday.

“I would say that we made some errors, no doubt about it,” said John P. Ledden Jr., director of social services. “I want to ensure we learn something from this case.”

The department fired one senior social worker on Tuesday, and suspended two social work managers for five days without pay, according to officials. Ledden would not provide specifics on what the employees failed to do.

The review has prompted changes to county procedures. Now, even when abuse reports are determined to be invalid, if there are three or more invalid reports about the same child, the case will be investigated further, Ledden said.

The county has provided the social services department with money in the most recent budget to hire two more social workers after July 1. Ledden said he’s also considering additional training and responders on call after hours.

The agency’s inquiry has been welcomed by those who attempted to warn officials that the girl was being abused. But some still blame county officials for not responding earlier.

“We understand that you didn’t murder her, but if you would have done your job and removed her from the home, she would have been protected,” said Marlene Williams, a bus driver. Williams and her attendant told police that they saw Gregg-Glover drive with the girl in the trunk of a car in 2007.

A Virginia Department of Social Services spokesman said an inquiry into the case is expected to be released to county officials within the next three weeks. The county police department also has ordered an internal review into the handling of its encounters with the girl.

Gregg-Glover was indicted in March on several charges, including first-degree murder and felony child abuse. Police say she lied when she told them her daughter had run away in January. A massive search ensued. The girl’s body was found two days later in a Woodbridge area creek.

Gregg-Glover’s trial is set for July 6.

CARLY SAWYER: GIRL HAD BEEN SUBJECT OF CUSTODY FIGHT, RELATIVE SAYS

I would like my readers to pay attention to the differences in the Virgina News Report about this crime and the North Carolina News.

Carly Sawyer used to live in Onslow County North Carolina, where allegedly, there were roughly 25 reports made on her father to Onslow County DSS.  Most of my readers will remember that Onslow County North Carolina DSS is the same department that failed to protect Kayla Allen.

 The Virgina News report mentions previous reports and investigations for abuse, but the North Carolina News Report does not.  Can anyone tell me why North Carolina does not mention these reports AT ALL?

It has long been my opinion that DSS corruption is kept out of the news, this is a practice that has to change. I expect the news to report the whole story, not just part of it and the American people have the right to know if DSS was involved with a family before a child was killed.  I feel that North Carolina hides DSS involvement in children’s’ deaths.

VIRGINIA NEWS REPORTS

 

 

 Girl had been subject of custody fight, relative says

 

Carly Sawyer

http://hamptonroads.com/2009/06/girl-had-been-subject-custody-fight-relative-says

By Patrick Wilson

The Virginian-Pilot

© June 14, 2009

CHESAPEAKE

The grandfather of the 5-year-old girl killed in a case in which her father and stepmother were charged remembered her Saturday as a happy child with long, curly hair.

“She was just a beautiful little loving, fun child,” said Robert Kimery of Zachary, La., the grandfather of Carly Sawyer. “Loved to laugh. Loved to play.”

Revolving around Carly, however, was a custody battle between two families, said Kimery, whose daughter Jennifer is Carly’s mother.

Carly died Thursday at Children’s Hospital of The King’s Daughters in Norfolk. A medical examiner determined that the cause was blunt-force trauma. Contributing factors included starvation, ligature restraint and medical neglect, police said.

Paramedics were called to her family’s house in the 1400 block of Oliver Ave. in Chesapeake about 5 p.m. Wednesday for a report of an unresponsive child. On Friday evening, detectives arrested Carly’s father, Joshua Sawyer, 24, and his wife, Brandy Sawyer, 21.

Joshua Sawyer was charged with second-degree murder and felony child neglect. Brandy Sawyer was charged with first-degree murder and felony child neglect.

Kimery said he and his daughter had little contact with Carly in the past 2-1/2 years after a court in Jacksonville, N.C., granted Joshua Sawyer custody of her.

Jennifer and Joshua Sawyer met and married in California when she was in the Air Force and he was in the Marines. They separated about three years ago and divorced after she was stationed in South Carolina and he was stationed in Jacksonville, with Carly, Kimery said.

Jennifer Kimery and a friend, on a visit to see Carly, took her back to Georgia where Jennifer was living. That upset Sawyer, Robert Kimery said.

She also filed a complaint of abuse against her ex-husband with Child Protective Services in North Carolina, he said.

Kimery said he and his wife were raising Carly in Louisiana to keep her away from Joshua Sawyer, until Sawyer got an order granting him temporary custody.

“They had a court order for me to return her,” Kimery said. “We took her back and he stated that we would never see her again.”

Kimery said he did not know Joshua and Brandy Sawyer had moved from North Carolina to Hampton Roads until his family learned Carly was in the hospital.

Three neighbors of the Sawyers on Saturday said they rarely saw them. In addition to Carly, the couple has a younger daughter and also lived with a young daughter of Brandy Sawyer’s.

The Sawyers are being held without bond at the Chesapeake jail, a jail spokeswoman said.

On her Facebook page, Brandy Sawyer complained recently of being depressed and stressed. In April, she wrote that she was 10 weeks pregnant and in another post said she “just wants to run away from life.”

In May, she wrote that she was feeling “really down and depressed.”

She also wrote on Facebook and in a comment on the Web site of the Jacksonville Daily News about a criminal case involving her sister, Dana Leigh Browning. (story at bottom of page)

Browning, 19, was arrested in November in Onslow County, N.C., on charges of concealing the birth of a child, failure to report a death and obstruction of justice. She is accused of putting her dead newborn girl in a plastic bag, then putting the body in the garbage and not notifying anyone, the Jacksonville Daily News reported. A court hearing is scheduled for June 30.

Sawyer also joined a Facebook cause called Stop Child Abuse.

In her most recent post, at 12:10 a.m. Friday, she wrote: “Carly passed away. We need prayers, holding onto nothing I feel like.”

A man who answered the phone at her mother’s house in North Carolina on Saturday said her mother was not home and asked that a reporter not call back.

Joshua Sawyer’s father, David K. Sawyer of New York, declined to comment when reached Saturday.

Patrick Wilson, (757) 446-2957, patrick.wilson@pilotonline.com

 

Chesapeake girl kept in box, denied food, warrants say

 

Carly Sawyer

http://hamptonroads.com/2009/06/chesapeake-girl-kept-box-denied-food-warrants-say

By Alicia P.Q. Wittmeyer

The Virginian-Pilot

© June 17, 2009

CHESAPEAKE

In the last months of her life, Carly Sawyer was put into a cardboard box as punishment.

Sometimes she was tied up with mesh netting. Other times, her father, Joshua Sawyer, and stepmother, Brandy Sawyer, withheld food, or spanked her with a belt.

Chesapeake police filed search warrants Tuesday that provided new details about the murder cases against Carly’s father and stepmother. The affidavit for the warrant – which police use to convince a magistrate that they have probable cause to search private property – notes that Joshua gave a statement to police.

In the last days of her life, Carly arrived at a hospital with cuts, bruises and burns on her body and ligature marks on her wrists.

She was unconscious, and further examination revealed she had no brain activity, police have said.

The 5-year-old died Thursday. A day later, police charged Joshua Sawyer, 24, with second-degree murder and felony child neglect. Brandy Sawyer, 21, is charged with first-degree murder and felony child neglect.

Joshua Sawyer is scheduled to have a bond hearing this morning, a bond hearing for his wife is scheduled for Friday.

According to police, last Wednesday, one of the Sawyers called 911 after Carly became unconscious. It’s not clear who called – there are two search warrants, and one says it was Brandy. The other says it was Joshua.

When medics arrived, they thought Carly’s cuts and bruises looked suspicious and requested that police investigate, the warrants show.

The Sawyers told police that Brandy Sawyer had spanked Carly, and the girl had thrown herself to the floor. Later, Joshua Sawyer admitted to “using netting material as restraints, restricting the child to a cardboard box as a form of discipline, withholding food and spankings,” according to the warrant.

Handwritten, a detective added “with a belt” with his signature next to it.

“We knew that it was something to this effect,” said Carly’s grandfather, Robert Kimery, whose daughter Jennifer is Carly’s biological mother. “We just didn’t know to the extent.”

The medical examiner who looked at Carly determined the cause of her death was blunt-force trauma, although contributing factors included starvation, ligature restraint and medical neglect.

“Starvation doesn’t just come in a matter of a week or more,” Kimery said. “They’ve both done something to do this to her. It’s not just a one-time incident.”

Police seized two cardboard boxes, one bloody paper towel, a roll of blue mesh, a digital video camera, two insurance documents for Carly, nine photos of the girl, and a black leather belt from the two-story home that the Sawyers were leasing on Oliver Avenue, according to the warrant.

Police also searched for computers and computer equipment, although none are listed among the items seized.

According to the warrant, police found Brandy Sawyer’s page on the social-networking site Facebook, on which she refers to an e-mail account she used to send messages to her friends “about how stressed she was over the children.”

On her Facebook page, Brandy Sawyer wrote multiple times about being depressed.

Feeling “really down and depressed,” she wrote May 14. On April 24, she wrote “I give up omg I just give up.”

The page also includes multiple photo albums with pictures of her children – Carly and two other girls. There are pictures of Carly picking flowers, riding a bike and holding her baby sister. One is from Halloween, another from Christmas. One is titled “Pics of my angels.”

Child Protective Services is caring for the couple’s other two children, police said Monday.

Joshua Sawyer’s lawyer said he could not comment Tuesday. Brandy Sawyer’s lawyer did not return a phone call.

Alicia Wittmeyer, (757) 222-5216, alicia.wittmeyer@pilotonline.com

 

NORTH CAROLINA NEWS

 

Child dead in Norfolk, custody battle began in Jacksonville

 

http://www.jdnews.com/news/sawyer-64896-child-custody.html?

 

June 14, 2009 – 7:11 PM

A 5-year-old girl that was subject of a custody fight died Thursday in Norfolk, Va..

Carly Sawyer, whose father Joshua Sawyer was granted custody of her by a Jacksonville court, died of blunt-force trauma, a medical examiner told the Virginia Pilot.

Contributing factors were starvation, ligature restraint and medical neglect.

Paramedics were called to her family’s house in Chesapeake about 5 p.m. Wednesday for a report of an unresponsive child.

Joshua Sawyer, and his wife Brandy Sawyer, were arrested Friday evening and are being held without bond at the Chesapeake jail in Virginia, according to the Pilot.

Brandy Sawyer’s sister, Dana Leigh Browning, was arrested in November by the Onslow County Sheriff’s Department for conceling the birth of a child, failure to report a death and obstruction of justice after allegedly putting her dead newborn girl in a plastic bag, then putting the body in the garbage and not notifying anyone.

Browning is scheduled to appear in court June 30.

 

Brandy Sawyer’s sister, Dana Leigh Browning

 

Woman arrested on charges related to dead newborn left in garbage can

 

http://www.jdnews.com/news/body-60519-garbage-baby.html

 

November 6, 2008 – 2:40 PM

The alleged mother of a dead newborn girl found in a Hubert area garbage truck has been arrested by the Onslow County Sheriff’s Department.

Dana Leigh Browning, 19, of Freedom Way in Hubert, was charged today with concealing the birth of child, failure to report a death and obstruction of justice. Her bond was set at $9,000.

Sheriff Ed Brown said his detectives have developed information that others may have been involved with the child’s birth.

“When initially questioned, Mrs. Browning lied to investigators,” Brown said in a news release Thursday. “The mother has continued to be uncooperative throughout the investigation.”

Evidence obtained during the investigation positively identified Browning as the mother of the baby, authorities said.

Browning is accused of placing the baby in a plastic bag and putting the bag in the garbage without notifying anyone else, according to warrants.

An autopsy of the remains was conducted by the Onslow County Medical Examiner’s Office and reviewed by the State Medical Examiner’s Office in Chapel Hill. The examiners determined that the baby’s body was that of a full-term newborn, but were unable to determine whether the baby was born alive due to the state of decomposition of the remains.

An employee with MWM Hauling found the body in the back of his garbage truck Oct. 27 while at Sandy Oaks Apartments on Crystal Lane just off N.C. 172.

He told The Daily News that originally he thought the baby was some type of animal because he is used to seeing carcasses in the trash. But a closer look revealed the body to be dead baby. The baby was not clothed, a medical examiner said last week. Emergency workers responded and took the body to the morgue at Onslow Memorial Hospital.

Crime Stoppers of Onslow County is offering a reward of up to $2,500 for information leading to additional arrests in the case.

Anyone with information concerning this incident can contact Maj. Frank Terwilliger or Sgt. T. J. Cavanagh with the Onslow County Sheriff’s Department at 910-455-3113 or Onslow Crime Stoppers at 910-938-3273. Callers do not have to reveal their identities.

Contact crime reporter Lindell Kay at 910-219-8456. Read Lindell’s blog at http://onslowcrime.encblogs.com

RESIDENTS CRITICIZE THIRD-PARTY REVIEW DECISION

 

http://www.nvdaily.com/news/2009/06/residents-criticize-third-party-review-d.html

 

Supervisors approved Springsted Inc. to conduct management evaluation

 

By Ben Orcutt — borcutt@nvdaily.com

FRONT ROYAL — Despite the unanimous decision of the Warren County Board of Supervisors to have an outside company perform a management review of the Department of Social Services, some of the agency’s harshest critics are skeptical about the process.

The supervisors voted Tuesday to authorize County Administrator Douglas P. Stanley to sign a contract with Minnesota-based Springsted Inc., which has an office in Richmond, to conduct an organizational management study of the agency at a cost not to exceed $9,975, plus expenses.

The study will help the county evaluate management and operating policies of the department to determine if it is adhering to established guidelines and whether any improvements are needed.

Stanley said the process will involve conducting confidential interviews with current employees and former workers who have left within the past 36 months. Alleged cases of mismanagement within the department also will be reviewed.

Confidential surveys will be given to the agency’s staff to gather information on the administration of internal policies. Springsted will look to begin its study by June 15 and finish it by the end of August.

Department of Social Services Director Ronald L. King, who is in his 10th year at the helm of the agency, said Friday that he and the department will cooperate fully with the review.

“We welcome the opportunity to work with the board of supervisors during this process,” King said. “We have outstanding employees here at the Department of Social Services and this is a wonderful department with a professional team who takes pride in working with and helping the citizens of Warren County. I am very proud of our staff and the hard work they do for our community. This department is open to anything that would provide for a continual process of improvement.”

However, several county residents who have been critical of the agency expressed skepticism about the study in e-mails on Thursday.

“I’m curious as to the legalities of this study,” said Judith McClosky, a former Department of Social Services fraud investigator who has a lawsuit pending against King and the agency for wrongful termination. “If the BOS does not control this agency, how can they make this agency go through an independent study? Can DSS just simply say, NO? Why were they even selected to conduct this study? You have to look at who suggested this company to the BOS and why.”

Outspoken community activist William “Bill” Pierceall took Shenandoah District Supervisor Richard H. “Dick” Traczyk and Happy Creek Supervisor Tony F. Carter to task for being reluctant to go along with the independent review of the agency.

“The red-faced-bulging-veined resistance by Traczyk and Carter to an independent third party forensic financial audit of DSS was stubborn stonewalling,” Pierceall said. “There comes a point when stubbornness is not leadership; it is stupidity fostered by political considerations trumping principle. Is this the standard of behavior we now tolerate as the norm from our local politicians?

“I believe the Springsted investigation will uncover enough new information concerning the mishandling of County funds that it will lead to an investigation by the Justice Department and the Virginia State Police to examine if Federal and State funds were manipulated in similar fashion.”

Linda B. Selover, a local attorney who has a lawsuit pending against King and DSS Board of Directors Chairwoman Prudence B. Mathews for alleged violations of the Virginia Freedom of Information Act, spoke in a similar vein.

“Will Springsted begin investigaating the 2007 Special Grand Jury findings?” she said in her e-mail. “Are the legal authorities/politicians committed to further investigation if Springsted’s ‘audit’ confirms the 2007 Special Grand Jury findings? Are the legal authorities/politicians committed to ensuring that corrective action is taken if evidence of systemic failure is gleaned? Are the legal authorities/politicians committed to implementing and enforcing new policies and procedures (checks and balances) if (when) problems are identified?”

ALEXIS “LEXIE” AGYEPONG-GLOVER

Mother Indicted In Va. Killing

 

Body of Girl, 13, Found in Creek

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/03/03/AR2009030302445.html

By Jonathan MummoloWashington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, March 4, 2009; Page B01

A Prince William County woman whose 13-year-old adopted daughter was found dead in a shallow creek has been indicted on charges of murder, lying to police and abusing the child, authorities announced yesterday.

Police said Alfreedia Gregg-Glover, 44, of the Manassas area, lied when she told them that her daughter, Alexis “Lexie” Agyepong-Glover, had run away Jan. 7, prompting a massive search. Two days later, Lexie’s body was found in a Woodbridge area creek, and an autopsy determined that she died of drowning and exposure to the cold. Her death was ruled a homicide, and police say Gregg-Glover placed her in the creek.

Commonwealth’s Attorney Paul B. Ebert said the medical examiner believes Lexie was alive when she was placed in the frigid creek, but he would not comment further on the case. He said the abuse charge stems from Gregg-Glover’s conduct on the date of Lexie’s death.

A Prince William grand jury has returned indictments against Gregg-Glover, charging her with first-degree murder, felony murder, felony child abuse and filing a false police report, authorities said. The two murder counts will give the jury the option of finding that Gregg-Glover acted with or without premeditation, they said.

At a news conference to announce the indictments, Ebert said the tragedy of Lexie’s death was compounded by the fact that Gregg-Glover lied to police, wasting the time and resources of those charged with protecting the larger community.

“A lot of expense, time and trouble went to trying to locate this child, believing it was an abduction, when all along the indications are, of course, that the mother was responsible for the disappearance and the death,” Ebert said. “The crime itself is bad enough.”

After Lexie was found in the creek, Gregg-Glover was charged with felony neglect and lying to police, but those charges were dropped by the prosecution last week. She remains free on bond and is due in court Friday, when a trial date will be set and prosecutors will move to have her held without bond, Ebert said.

A phone call to Barry A. Zweig, a court-appointed attorney who represented Gregg-Glover in court last week, was not returned yesterday.

Authorities said that Lexie had run away several times before her disappearance and that sheriff’s deputies had fitted her with a locator bracelet used to track endangered people. The bracelet was found near a Manassas library shortly after Gregg-Glover reported Lexie missing, and authorities said Gregg-Glover placed it there. She then appealed through the media for the safe return of her daughter, who she said had autism and other ailments.

Hundreds of police officers, deputies and volunteers combed the area, using search dogs and helicopters to look for Lexie as darkness descended and temperatures dropped below freezing. On Jan. 9, a man out for a walk found Lexie’s body in a creek eight miles from the library. Gregg-Glover was charged days later.

Allegations that Lexie had been previously abused by Gregg-Glover have surfaced since Lexie’s death. Ebert said yesterday that investigators had been in contact with social services officials.

Former caretakers and counselors who knew Lexie have disputed that she was “disabled,” saying she was an intelligent, affectionate girl. Last week, about 35 people signed letters to county and state officials calling for an investigation into whether Prince William County’s Department of Social Services mishandled Lexie’s case while she was alive and whether procedural changes are necessary to prevent adopted children from landing in the wrong homes.

Tragedy in Plain Sight

Why didn’t anyone come to the aid of Lexie Agyepong-Glover?

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/03/09/AR2009030902473.html

Tuesday, March 10, 2009; Page A12

ALEXIS “LEXIE” Agyepong-Glover did what she could to get help. So did the neighbors and school workers who saw signs that the 13-year-old Prince William girl was being abused and neglected. Tragically, though, the same cannot be said about the people, or the system, entrusted with guarding children from harm. The failures surrounding the death of this winsome young girl must be thoroughly investigated, with those responsible held to account and the system fixed.

Alexis was found dead from drowning and exposure in an icy creek on Jan. 9, two days after Alfreedia Gregg-Glover, her adoptive mother, reported her missing. The medical examiner’s report found evidence of old injuries, and Ms. Gregg-Glover was charged with murder, lying to police and child abuse.

The Post’s Jonathan Mummolo has recounted the girl’s desperate efforts to get help. There were multiple reports from people who said they saw signs and incidents of her mistreatment, but county police and child social workers seemed unwilling or unable to do anything about them. There were reports of the girl being put into the trunk of a car and driven away, of her not being properly clothed or fed, of suspicious marks on her body. Lexie would run away, neighbors and officials said, and tell people about her mistreatment — but again and again she was returned home.

It is unclear, because of overly strict confidentiality laws that cloak the case from needed scrutiny, whether individuals made mistakes in judgment or whether there were problems with the system — or both. Did police, social workers and school officials ever sit down to review all of the reports regarding Alexis, or did they operate in silos? Did anyone ever challenge Ms. Gregg-Glover’s assertion that her daughter’s mental condition was the cause of the problems? Why didn’t alarm bells go off when she was pulled out of school?

More also must be known about the circumstances under which Ms. Gregg-Glover was allowed to adopt the girl. Yesterday, Police Chief Charlie T. Deane called for a comprehensive review of all police actions and policies related to the case, including getting ideas for improvement from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

The Virginia Department of Social Services is also conducting a legally mandated review of the county’s handling of the case. It will, though, be up to the Prince William Board of County Supervisors to make all the findings known and to make sure that the cracks through which Lexie fell are closed.